Xujin
by Xaiban
Summary: He fought for everything he had and when it was taken from him was his faith shaken, or was his resolve strengthened?


' _Surely you can understand why someone of your current status is unworthy to marry my daughter?'_

It had been two months. Two months had passed since the Fire Lord had stripped him of everything he had worked so hard for. The last three years had been the best of Xujin's short life. He started as an ordinary orphan who practiced his fire bending in the orphanage courtyard after school. He trained every day for as long as he could in the hopes of being admitted into the Fire Nation's officer training program. He was only twelve at the time, but when he was finished with school he would join the navy. Then a better opportunity had presented itself. The Prince had been banished and the Fire Lord was seeking a strong replacement for him. A tournament was to be held, and the winner would marry the Princess. In that tournament Xujin had fought all types of people, non-benders, kids, teens, adults, and he had defeated them all. A twelve year old boy had defeated men who had trained and served with the Fire Nation Navy. For two days he fought, and in the end he even had to defeat Azula herself. He had impressed the Fire Lord so much that in addition to becoming the Crown Prince he was given the title of The Young Dragon.

Xujin had spent more time outside the palace in the last two months than he has in the last three years. Once the Princess had returned along with the banished Prince, he had been stripped of everything. His palace suite had been returned to Prince Zuko, and his engagement to Princess Azula was canceled. But worst of all, he had spent so much time training and trying to please the Fire Lord and the Princess that he had not made any friends. The only thing Xujin had left was his bending. The Fire Lord had seen fit to bestow Xujin with the rank of Captain in the Royal Guard. He would always be near the palace, but he was not permitted to enter. The Commander of the Royal Guard would not allow Xujin to keep the long hair that signified his nobility. Like everything else, that too was taken from him. It had been two months and the closest Xujin had gotten to seeing his ex-fiancé, was watching as her palanquin was carried through the front gate. Her amber eyes haunted his dreams every night. He missed the electricity and heat in the air around her. If he could have any one thing, he would have their engagement reinstated. But he knew that would never happen. Azula always gets what she wants, and when she brought Zuko back as a hero it made their engagement irrelevant. The Prince had returned and the Fire Lord had no more need for a replacement. As he was demoted to the Royal Guard, he was not seen as worthy of the Princess.

Xujin was no longer privy to the information that he once was. He knew something was going on because the Fire Lord had requested his presence. He hadn't seen nor heard from any of the royal family in two months, and now the Fire Lord is calling for him. Whatever was happening it had to be important, he had thought the Fire Lord had already forgotten him. When he had entered the palace nothing had seemed out of the ordinary. But now as he knelt before the Fire Lord he could see that something was going on. The Fire Lord was tired, the bags under his eyes implies that he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.

"I have called you here before me today," the Fire Lord started. "Not only because you have shown extraordinary talent, but the ability to lead a unit as well. Today there will be an eclipse. The moon will block the sun rendering us unable to firebend for up to ten minutes. We have learned that during this time there will be an attack by the Earth Kingdom."

An eclipse is rather rare, it had been sometime since he had seen one. So that was why the Fire Lord had called him. Unlike everyone else that Xujin knew, he was the only one able to firebend during the last eclipse. His fire was weaker than normal but it was still strong enough fight with.

"What is it that you would like for me to do, my lord?" he asked.

"We will be retreating into the fortifications below the city," said Ozai. "Princess Azula will be accompanied by her Dai Li agents and will serve as a decoy should anyone make it that far into the volcano. You will be coming with me as my personal bodyguard. As you are the only person that we know of who can bend during an eclipse, it only makes since for you to guard your lord."

Xujin's trust in the Fire Lord had been shaken when he had taken everything away from him. He was still loyal to his country and he would die before betraying it, but he did not like the idea of Azula being a decoy.

"Is it wise to leave the Princess' life in the hands of those who have already betrayed one master?" he asked. "After all they are Earth Kingdom agents, and I assume it is the Earth Kingdom that is invading. Would it not be better for me to aid her instead, my lord?"

He watched as the Fire Lord considered his argument and proposal. The Fire Lord did not like to be questioned, but during his time as Prince the Fire Lord had come to respect his input.

"Azula will be fine. She trusts the Dai Li will guard her with their lives, and Azula is not one to trust easily," the Fire Lord said.

He wasn't lying. Three years he had known Azula and not once had she confided in him. Sure she discussed a few plans and told him what she thought of certain people, but she had never opened up to him. He had started to wonder if there was anything to open, but he knew there was. Any time her mother was brought up she would shut down the conversation and walk away.

"Very well, my lord," he said. "What would you have me do?"

The Fire Lord rose from his throne and extinguished the fire that lined the stage.

"Follow me," Ozai commanded.

Rising and falling in step behind the Fire Lord like he had done many times before, Xujin followed the Fire Lord through a door to the side of the throne room. As he followed, he thought back to the day he had been demoted. It didn't make much sense to him, why he was put with the Royal Guard instead of the elite.

"May I ask a question, my lord?" he asked.

Ozai spared him no glance, he just kept walking. "You may," was all he said after a moment.

"At the risk of sounding arrogant," he started. "Why was I placed into the Royal Guard and not the Elite Guard?"

"Do you not like you new position?" the Fire Lord asked.

"It isn't that, my lord," Xujin said. "I just believe that my abilities, most of which you taught me yourself, would be better suited to the Elite Guard."

"Hmm," was all got in response. They had reached the door leading down into the volcano, and were now walking down a winding staircase carved into the volcano.

"It was Azula's idea to place you with the Royal Guard," the Fire Lord said. "I wanted to put you in the Elite Guard, but Azula wanted to see how you would do in a position of leadership. I also wanted to see how you would do in such a position, so I agreed. You did not disappoint."

In the two months that he had been a captain in the Royal Guard, he had thwarted several attempts of would be assassins, before they got anywhere near the palace. All but one of them had been earth benders, the other had been a warrior from the Northern Water Tribe, he wasn't even a bender.

"Thank you, my lord," he said.

They continued down the spiral staircase in silence for a few more minutes, before arriving at a large set of steel doors. They swung open as we neared and closed again as we passed through it. It wasn't much longer that they came to another door, though they didn't go inside. They continued through the twisting hallway until they came to the end. The hallway dead ended into another large door that he knew would house a temporary throne for the Fire Lord.

It was easy to tell when the invasion started. We had barely arrived to the Fire Lord's safe room, when we started to feel the vibrations of trebuchet launches. It would seem that the invasion started before the eclipse. Not that it would matter no one could find this bunker before the eclipse ended. Even if they did somehow find them, Xujin doubted that anyone other than the Avatar would get through him. The Elite Guard was with them in the Fire Lord's room, they were all very skilled benders and were quite skilled with pikes as well. It would be foolish of anyone to come here, which was why it was not surprising when Prince Zuko arrived.

Just as the effects of the eclipse were felt the door of the chamber opened, revealing Prince Zuko. He strode forward with more confidence than Xujin had ever seen from him. He was obviously feeling as if he were in control.

"What are you doing here Prince Zuko?" asked the Fire Lord. He was confused as to why the Prince would seek him out at this time.

Zuko stopped walking as he approached the line of guards that stood before the Fire Lord and Xujin. His face was set with determination, and there was likely nothing anyone could do to stop him from whatever it was he wanted to do, or at least he feels that way. Xujin had never met the Prince, but he was sure that Zuko had no clue what he was capable of.

"I'm here to tell the truth," Zuko said.

A slight smile slid into place on the Fire Lord's face. Xujin could feel the amusement rolling off of the Fire Lord. He wasn't taking Zuko very seriously.

"Telling the truth during the middle of an eclipse," the Fire Lord said. "This should be interesting."

With a wave of his hand the Fire Lord sent the guard away. Xujin hesitated at the Fire Lord's side.

"Are you sure, my lord?" he asked.

The Fire Lord looked to Xujin, with a look that seemed to ask "do you really think he's a threat to me?"

"Very well, my lord," he said. "I'll just go check in with the Princess then."

As he saw the Fire Lord nod his approval, Xujin left through the door at the far end of the chamber. Once he was back in the hallway, he set off to find Azula. As he walked his thoughts turned to what kind of truths the Prince could have to tell the Fire Lord. As far as he knew the only thing that the Prince might have lied about was his accomplishments in Ba Sing Se. His thoughts were interrupted the sound of earth bending.

He began running down the hallway, and darted through the open door of Azula's room just in time to watch her come flying through a hole punched into a large wall of earth. Watching her fly through the air with hair blowing around and the smirk on her lips, Xujin was a little distracted. Though he was broken out of his observations when a Dai Li agent also came through the hole.

"So nice of you to join us," Azula said as she slid to a stop behind Xujin. "I wonder if you'll be strong enough to stop them?"

Turning his attention back to the wall, Xujin saw a small girl and surprisingly the Avatar fly through the hole as well. The girl wasted no time and as she landed a wave of earth spikes came rushing toward them. The Dai Li agent stopped them with a short wall as Xujin placed his hands in the accepted sign of surrender.

"Who are you?" shouted a boy carrying some sort of club. He was dressed in blue so he assumed that meant the water tribes were attacking as well.

"My name is Xujin," he said. "We don't need to continue fighting. There is no reason for you or your friends to be harmed Avatar."

As he said this they looked at him like he was crazy. Even Azula thought he was being stupid.

"You're a fire bender, right?" asked the short girl, to which he responded with a nod. "Then what do we have to fear of you? You're just as handicapped as the rest your army."

"Avatar, please," he asked, with a sigh. "I know you care for them, just as I care for the Princess. Neither of us want to see the ones we care about hurt. Lay down your staff, and I promise your friends will go free."

"Like hell we'll let him surrender," the water tribe boy yelled.

Xujin never thought he would be staring down the Avatar, and he certainly didn't expect the Avatar to look so frightened. His legs were shaking, and his staff wasn't held so high.

"Aang what's wrong," asked the earth bender.

The Avatar just kept watching the new arrival, he didn't even blink. He didn't know what it was about this guy, but he was dangerous. Looking into his eyes Aang could tell that he was telling the truth, but he couldn't just give up.

"Guys," Aang started. "Be careful around him, he feels dangerous."

With another sigh, Xujin looked back to Azula. She was looking at him in confusion, as if trying to figure out what he was going on about.

"Very well, Avatar," he said. "When this is over, don't say I didn't try to reason with you."

"Enough talking already," said the Princess. "Dai Li take out the earth bender. Xujin handle the Avatar, as I am the only one of us unable to bend at the moment, I'll deal with the water tribe peasant."

The Dai Li was the first to act, putting all three of them on the defensive. This separated them and allowed for the fights to spread out. Xujin came out swing, fireballs blasted from his hands as he jumped into the air toward the Avatar. The Avatar true to his airbender roots, was dodging every blast, spinning and flipping all over the place. The Avatar's air bending was proving quite useless, as every time he tried to blast Xujin he was countered. Eventually Aang had to resort to just earth bending as it was the only element he had access to that couldn't be shot out of the sky with fire. But it too was unable to stop Xujin from advancing. As he backed the Avatar into a corner, Xujin was unable to see the object that struck the back of his head. Lying on the ground wondering what had happened, he saw Azula dart out the door and into the hall. The last thing he saw before everything went black was the Avatar and his friends rush out of the room after Azula.


End file.
